Loose cosmetic powder compact



o. MORNINGSTAR ETAL 2,737,189

LOOSE COSMETIC POWDER COMPACT March 6, 1956 Filed 061;. 11, 1954 2Sheets-Sheet l #No fof/N M SOLoMa/v WM 1cm United States Patent() LQSECUSME'EEC POWDER COMPACT Otto Morningstar, Newton, Mass., and .lohn W.Solomon, New York, N. Y.

Application October 11, 1954, Serial No. 461,438

6 Claims. (Ci. 132-83) This invention relates to cosmetic boxes, andmore particularly to a compact suitable for carrying loose cosmeticpowders.

The cosmetic industry has long been faced with the diilicult task ofdeveloping an inexpensive box capable of retaining loose powders. Theproblem of constructing a compact of this character was a particularlydifficult one, for substantially perfect seals are necessary between thecover and case to prevent leaking of the powder through the seams of thebox. Heretofore the industry has only partially overcome the numerousdiiculties by fabricating from metal compacts to hold loose powder. Themetal edges of the compact, with great care, could be shaped to form anadequate seal to retain the powder but this necessarily createdconsiderable expense on the part of the manufacturer, and although theoperability of the seal between the cover and case was adequate, it didleave much room for improvement.

The use of metal in the construction of compacts gave rise to otherproblems. For example, when a tongue and groove were formed in the coverand case to provide a seal, powder would collect in the groove. Lackingflexibility, the groove could not expand to receive the tongue whenpowder partially filled it.

Ultimately, the cosmetic industry was forced to provide loose powdersubstitutes. Constant spilling of the loose powder from the relativelyexpensive metal compacts virtually gave birth to the cake powderindustry. The inability of the cake powder to spill permitted the use ofhighly decorative and relatively inexpensive polystyrene in themanufacture of compacts. The cake powder did not require a highlyeiiicient seal and, therefore, relatively rigid polystyrene provided theideal substance to permit inexpensive fabrication of the cake powdercompact.

The primary object of this invention is to greatly reduce the cost ofconstructing a loose powder cosmetic box.

Another object of this invention is to provide a highly eilicientplastic seal between the cover and case of a polystyrene compact whichprevents seeping of loose powder from the interior of the case. y

To accomplish these and other objects, we provide as one importantfeature of this invention avpolyethylene gasket on the rim of apolystyrene cosmetic case.

Still another important feature of this invention is the provision of aline seal between a relatively rigid plastic bezel carried by the coverof the compact and the polyethylene gasket carried on the rim of thecase.

Still ano-ther feature of this invention is the provision of a tongueand groove connection between the rigid case and cover of the compact inaddition to the seal provided by the bezel and gasket.

These and other objects and features of this invention will be betterunderstood and appreciated from the following detailed description of apreferred embodiment thereof selected for purposes of illustration andshown in the accompanying drawing in which:

Patented Mar. 6, 1956 ICC Fig. `1 is a plan view of a compactconstructed in accordance with this invention,

Fig. 2 is an elevation view partially in section of the compactillustrated in Fig. 1,

Fig. 3 is an exploded view in section taken along sight lines 4-4 ofFig. l, and

Fig. 4 is a view in section similar to Fig. 3 showing the variouselements of the compact in assembled position.

Proceeding now to a detailed description of the invention, an inspectionof the drawing reveals that the elements of the compact are organizedwithin a case 10 and a cover 30. The case and cover may readily bemolded from polystyrene or other rigid plastic material and may beornamented if desired.

The case 10 is provided with va relatively thin bottom wall 12 whichcooperates with a cylindrical side wall 14 to form a shallow cavity forreceiving loose cosmetic powder. The wall 14 intermediate its upper andlower portions is provided with an annular seat 16 in which is formed anannular groove 18. The upper terminal portion of the wall has integrallymolded with it a tongue 20 which cooperates with a slot 32 in the coversectio-n.

Seated on the surface 16 of the wall 14 is a relatively flexible ring orgasket 24 preferably molded from polyethylene. The gasket 24 hasintegrally formed therewith a tongue 26 which is received by the slot 18in the annular seat 16. The gasket may be retained in position bypressing the tongue in the slot. The flexible tongue of polyethylenewill by pressing, form a most satisfactory seal with the case. Not onlydoes this eliminate the need of cernenting the gasket to the wall butfurther permits the removal of the gasket when desired. The advantagesderived from being able to remove the gasket will be made clear in thedescription that follows.

The gasket 24 is of a size to extend over thepradially inner edge of thewall 14 of the case. A cloth compact sifter 22 which rests on top of theloose powder within the case and is of a diameter substantially equal tothe diameter of the cavity is retained in position by the slightoverhang of the gasket. The cooperation of the gasket with the sifter inthis manner insures against slipping of the sfter and, therefore,prevents spilling of the powder when the cover is open. In addition,although the sifter is retained in position by the gasket, to refill thecompact it is only necessary to remove the gasket from the seat 16 whichpermits withdrawal of the sifter. After the case has been refilled,merely placing the sifter above the powder and replacing the gasket onits seat insures against spilling of the compact contents.

Proceeding with the description of the gasket, it will be observed thata slot 28 is formed in the upper surface thereof adjacent its innerradial edge. The slot 28 cooperates with the tongue 36 of a bezel 34forming part of the cover assembly to provide a line seal between thecover and case sections of the compact.

The annular bezel 34 molded of rigid plastic material, preferablypolystyrene, performs a dual function in the compact. Most important,the rigid tongue 36 carried bynits lower face cooperates with the innerexible wall which defines the gasket groove to provide' a substantiallyand the peripheral portion of the mirror 46, respectively. To retain thebezel, disc, mirror, and cover in their assembled position, cement orother adhesive material may be employed. Once the cover section isassembled, no need will arise for dismantling these elements and,therefore, the use of adhesive does not limit the life or restrict theuse of the compact.

Having described the cover and case sections of the compact it will beappreciated that the various elements which comprise the assembly withthe exception of the mirror and the sifter readily may be formed byconventional injection molding machines. Both polystyrene andpolyethylene are conveniently worked by such apparatus which provides aninexpensive means of fabricating the compact. Moreover, the polystyrenebezel and polyethylene gasket achieves a virtually perfect seal for thecavity carrying the loose powder, by means of the cooperating tongue 36and groove 2S in the respective parts. A second tongue and groove 2t)and 32 formed in the case l and the cover 30 respectively constituteadded protection against seepage of the contents of the compact throughthe seam of the box.

To secure the cover assembly to the case, a hinge generally designatedby the numeral 52 is provided. A flange 54 integrally molded with thecover extends downwardly into a recess formed in the case, and is heldin position by a pin 55 which passes through the flange and engages thewalls of the recess. Across the diameter of the compact a latch 58 isprovided t-o yieldably retain the cover to the case. The latch may be ofany form, the details of which form no part of this invention.Obviously, the elements comprising the latch may be integrally moldedwith the cover and case sections, as illustrated.

Having thus described in great detail all of the components of thecompact, the advantages derived therefrom will be fully appreciated.When closed, not only is a tongue and groove provided to seal the caseand cover but a second seal of much greater effectiveness is providedbetween the bezel and gasket. The flexibility of the walls defining thegroove in the gasket permit a negative clearance between the tongue andgroove, thereby guaranteeing a positive seal between these elements. Thedifficulties which are encountered by powder partially filling thegrooves of metal cases is entirely eliminated, for a slight pressure onthe cover will cause the groove 23 to enlarge and receive the tongue 36,even though powder has partially filled it.

Another important advantage is achieved by employing the teachings ofthis invention. With the exception of the mirror and cloth sifter, theentire uni-t may be molded which greatly reduces the fabricating costs.Furthermore, the plastic compact invites the ornamentation so muchdesired by women.

In essence, this invention embodies an inexpensive and highly efficientcompact particularly designed to hold loose powder. From an appreciationof the foregoing description numerous modifications of this inventionwill be readily apparent to one skilled in the art to which thisinvention pertains. Therefore, it is not intended that the scope of thisinvention be limited to the specifically described and illustratedembodiment, but only by the appended claims and their equivalents.

What we claim .as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of theUnited States is:

l. A compact comprising a case having an annular side wall and a bottomWall defining a cavity, a seat formed in said side wall intermediate itslower and upper marginal portions, a groove formed in said seat, apolyethylene gasket removably mounted on said seat and having adownwardly projecting tongue terminating in said groove, a cover memberhinged to said case, a polystyrene bezel secured to said cover memberand abutting said gasket when said cover member is in its closedposition, and a cooperating tongue and groove formed in said gasket andbezel to seal the cavity when said cover is in its closed position.

2.. A compact comprising a relatively shallow rigid plastic case, saidcase having walls defining a cavity in said case, a gasket seat formedin said walls intermediate their upper and lower terminal portions, apolyethylene gasket removably mounted on said seat and having a grooveformed in its upper face, a cover member hinged to said case for closingsaid cavity, said cover having walls adapted to abut against the upperportions of the walls of said case, a tongue and groove connectionformed in the abutting portions of said case and cover walls, a rigidbezel carried by said cover and having a lower face which abuts theupper face of said gasket, and a tongue integrally formed in the lowerface of said bezel for mating with the groove in said gasket.

3. A loose powder compact comprising a cavity defined by a base and anannular wall for receiving loose cosmetic powder, an annular seat formedin said wall intermediate its upper and lower terminal portions, atongue integrally molded with said wall on the upper surface thereof, apolyethylene gasket positioned on said seat, said seat and gasket havinga cooperating tongue and groove connection for yieldably holding saidgasket on said seat, an annular cover hingedly connected to said wall ofsaid cavity having a lower face adapted to mate with the upper surfaceof said Wall, a groove formed in said lower face for receiving saidtongue on the upper surface of said wall, and a rigid ring carried bysaid cover adapted to mate at its periphery with said gasket, saidgasket and ring having a cooperating tongue and groove for sealing saidcompact when said cover is closed.

4. A loose powder compact comprising a molded rigid plastic case havingan upturned peripheral wall defining a shallow cavity, a relativelyflexible molded plastic gasket removably carried by said wall and havingan annular groove formed in its upper surface, a molded rigid plasticcover hingedly mounted on said case having a downwardly extendingperipheral wall adapted to abut against the wall of said case, anannular rigid bezel of molded plastic carried by said cover and having alower face which mates with the upper surface of said gasket when saidcover is moved to its closed position, and a rigid tongue integrallymolded with said bezel on its lower face for forming a seal with saidgroove in said gasket.

5. A loose powder compact comprising a base and an annular wall defininga cavity for receiving loose cosmetic powder, an annular seat formed insaid wall intermediate its upper and lower terminal portions, a tongueintegrally molded with said wall on the upper surface thereof, apolyethylene gasket positioned on said seat, said seat and gasket havinga cooperating tongue and groove connection for yieldably holding saidgasket on said seat, an annular cover hingedly connected to said walland having a lower face adapted to mate with the upper surface of thewall, a groove formed in said lower face for receiving the tongue on theupper surface of said wall, a rigid ring carried by the cover andadapted to mate at its periphery with the gasket, said gasket and saidring having a cooperating tongue and groove for sealing the compact whenthe cover is closed, and an ornamental disc extending through theannular cover and held in place by the rigid ring.

6. A loose powder compact comprising a molded rigid plastic case havingan upturned peripheral wall defining a shallow cavity, a relativelyflexible molded plastic gasket removably carried by said wall and havingan annular groove formed in its upper surface, a powder sifter disposedwithin the case and held in position by the gasket, a molded rigidplastic annular cover hingedly mounted on the case and having adownwardly extending peripheral wall adapted to abut against the wall ofthe case, an ornamental disc positioned adjacent the upper terminalportion of the peripheral wall of the cover, a mirror disposed over thelower surface of the ornamental disc, an

annular molded rigid plastic bezel carried by the cover holding the discand mirror in place, said bezel having a lower face which mates with theupper surface of the gasket when the cover is moved to its closedposition, and a rigid tongue integrally molded with the bezel on itslower face for forming a seal with the groove in the gasket.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 362,712Boyd May 10, 1887 6 Cranston Sept. 14, 1926 Setvate Nov. 19, 1929Metcalf Mar. 31, 1931 Bowers `lan. 19, 1932 Powers Jan. 29, 1935 PlasterMay 7, 1946 Grassi July 29, 1947 Casalino Mar. 30, 1948 Hill Aug. 12,1952

